


The unexpected

by Webtrinsic



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Bullied Peter Parker, Father-Son Relationship, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-10 09:56:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15946970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Webtrinsic/pseuds/Webtrinsic
Summary: Flash chokes Peter out. Luckily he has a pretty perceptive bodyguard and a loving adoptive father. Did he mention that said adoptive father is Tony Stark?





	The unexpected

The shock had lasted the rest of the school day, even after Happy came to pick him up. He just couldn’t seem to get his bearings together.

He’d been bullied, for years and years, it wasn’t anything new to have trash thrown at him or being tripped in the hall. Shoved in the girl's locker room, or even having his head dunked in a toilet. But never had he ever been choked out, let alone actively hit by someone.

To top it off, never had he expected Flash to get physical or to get the upper hand on him. He’d only been drying his hands when a punch grazed his cheek a mere second after his sense pinged. Dropping to his knees, only for Flash to grip him in a headlock.

He was Spider-Man for god sakes, but that didn’t give him an excuse for fighting now. He was only Peter Parker. The newly adopted son to the world famous Tony Stark. Not that anyone knew.

“You’re not going to tell me about your day?” Happy quipped, trying to seem snarky but was truly hiding his concern. Peter almost always told him about his day, and if he didn’t he was going off about something else.

“Oh,” Peter snapped back to himself for a moment voice incredibly soft, his throat hurt too bad behind the protection of his hoodie to be any louder.

“Pretty uneventful,”

Happy nodded, wanting desperately to tell the kid to cut the crap but knew better. The kid was rather timid for someone so fearless when fighting crime. Barking at him would do more harm than good and he didn’t want to face Tony after such a thing. When they got home he’d be interrogated still because the kid was in an obvious funk and who better to talk to said funk about than his personal bodyguard? No one.

Pulling up to the compound, Peter exited slower than usual, slow enough Happy had even opened the car door for him.  Peter always felt awkward when he did such a thing while being too restless to not get out himself the second they stopped. Happy opening the door almost never happened.

“Thanks,” Peter murmured, slinging his bag carefully over his shoulder and sluggishly bringing himself up the steps and into the building.

The teen didn’t bother in saying hello to Friday like he normally did either, just giving a small wave to the ceiling when she eloquently greeted him. 

Not that Peter or Happy knew as they went up the elevator, the AI flagged down her creator immediately.

May’s sudden death had brought back some less than charming tendencies that in no way needed to be repeated. This shift in behavior resembled those incidents far too much not to cause concern.

Tony in his lab, felt his body tense at the comment. Before carefully sliding his tools in their respective places and heading to the separate elevator and meeting the two on the third floor where the living room and quarters were.

“I’ll take this to your room kid,” Happy informed, peeling the bag off the boy's shoulder. Peter only nodded in response, still blankly seeing the gross tile floor of the school bathroom in his head. If Flash kept choking him he’d have died on that gross once white cracked, stained, and sticky floor.

The elevator dinged, Tony standing in front of the doors with a smile on his face. It was more forced if anything, but genuine in that he was happy to see Peter was in one piece. Happy gave a look, showing he didn’t know what was wrong before setting off. The two watching him leave.

The teen carefully stepped out, heading in the billionaire's direction.

“Kiddo, did you want to-“ he’d seen Peter come towards him but wasn’t expecting for Peter to burrow himself into his chest, hiding under his chin with his narrow arms wrapping around his waist. The boy’s body trembling ever so slightly as he wrapped his arms around him in turn.

His palms soothing over the quaking back in comfort. A muffled sob was pressed into his shirt causing the billionaire to rock lightly on his heels in added comfort. The two swaying slightly, assurances easily falling from the philanthropist's lips.

“It’s alright Petey, we’re okay. Don’t worry baby, I’m here,”

Millions of possibilities fluttered through the inventors head, it could have just been a bad day, someone could have said something wrong. Peter could have remembered something about his Aunt that was far too much. It could have also been people were all too much, a school environment to someone like Peter who not only had quite frankly super and mass input on his senses all the time but he also had social anxiety; this could possibly just be the result of some overstimulation. 

Gently leading Peter to the couch, Tony sat them down. Peter always very light in his grip, luckily, since Peter possibly without thinking had settled in his lap. Face pushing into the crook of his neck, smearing what he hoped was just tears into his pulse point.

Happy returned, his eyes widening at the sight but Tony quickly realized where the man was staring. Peter’s neck, which was clearly exposed in this position to keep his face in his throat.

Tony slipped the phone from his pocket using the camera to check himself, it was red in some places as if something had been wrapped around it. Carding a hand through Peter’s hair, maybe to comfort Peter or himself, he hated when he found a small bump. He’d been hit.

The billionaire's hand lay flat and protectively over the small bump, the tips of his fingers gently invading the brown tresses of hair. Tony continued to use his free hand to rub Peter’s back in comfort.

Happy rushed out, likely for an ice pack and a first aid kit in case the boy held more injuries they just couldn’t see yet.

Tony almost instinctively pressed his lips to the crown of the boy’s head, almost pulling away when he realized just what he was doing but stayed. His father would have never done something like this for him, just tell him to suck it up and push back.

Tony didn’t dare deny Peter any comfort and solemnly swore he’d provide as much of it as he could.

“A teacher do this?” Tony almost surprised himself with how calm his voice was because just the thought of someone he’d entrusted to watch his child hurting him made his fist clench and heart race. 

Coming down from his sobs Peter shook his head no, it didn’t help his worry because that meant it was another kid who’d made his baby cry. Kids could be cruel, not caring what they did because they simply believed there wouldn’t be any real punishment for it. No slap to the wrist would get them down, let alone stop them, it may only make things worse.

But they weren’t going to just get a slap on the wrist, they’d get kicked out of the school and a letter informing any college that they wanted to go to that they tried to choke out Iron-Man’s kid. Along with a long talk with a juvenile detention officer. The kid was lucky as hell he wasn’t pressing charges either.

He’d go for more, but realistically knew he couldn’t do much. But that little shit, whoever they are, would get the talking too of a lifetime. His slap on the wrist was the equivalent to being dropped off the Empire State Building because no one touches his kid.

Happy returned with a first aid kit and water bottle tucked under his arm, steaming soup in his left hand and an ice pack in his right.

Setting everything down, Tony grabbed the ice pack wrapped in a thin kitchen towel and pressed it carefully against the boys head.

He offered the water bottle but Peter didn’t go for it, keeping his head tucked into his adopted father's throat.

“Why don’t you eat sweetheart?” Tony insisted, much to Tony’s pleasure Peter sat upright, avoiding the men’s gazes as he slid off Tony’s lap. As much as the lack of warmth in his arms saddened the inventor he let Peter go, watching intently as Peter ate the soup. Slowing and stopping when he noticed them staring.

Happy left once again leaving to two to silence.

“Is there any other injuries I need to be worrying about?”

Peter shook his head, reaching and opening the water bottle to sip while Tony pressed the ice pack back against his head while he did so. 

“Can you tell me who did this?” Peter didn’t answer continuing on with his chicken noodle soup.

Tony sighed at that, “Peter, don’t hurt yourself over this. We can’t do what happened after May again, you’re my kid. I promise I’ll do everything I can to keep you safe, even from yourself. But I need you to help me and let me help. I can’t save you from yourself, and I can’t save you from whatever asshole who did this without your help,” the admission stung the teen. He always thought, even pressed when he knew it was unlikely. Tony could and would always save him if need be. 

Peter just wasn’t used to helping with that, the last time he tried the suit was gone and he was alone crying for help only to save the day and throw up blood for weeks. Being later on diagnosed with PTSD.

“Flash,” he whispered, Tony almost growled. He’d known the greasy little punk ass kid had been a nuisance thanks to Ned’s ramblings, but legitimately harming someone wasn’t in the kid's itinerary. But he believed it, there was no reason for Peter to lie, especially when he knew an innocent person would be punished for it.

Luckily it was Friday and Peter could stay home, sleep, not be burdened with going to school and running into his bully all too soon. 

Peter pushed the bowl to the center of the table when he was finished, leaning back against the couch and Tony’s hand. The cold ice pack lightly hurt the bump on his head, but it was tolerable and for the better so he didn’t complain as he tucked himself into the man’s side.

“I’ll have a talk with him, make sure this doesn’t happen again, okay?”

“‘Kay,” Peter returned, hugging to himself before ultimately pulling himself back into Tony’s lap and hiding again in his collarbone.

Yeah, Tony was going to have a long talk with the little punk. 

—-

Flash’ world fell apart at the sound of the principle deeming he wasn’t allowed to attend Midtown any longer, he sobbed pleading with Mr. Morita not to let him go.

“Someone’s here to talk with you about the incident, you can take your removal up with them,” he dismissed, leaving the room only for Flash to angrily wipe away his tears.

Ready to argue and scream with whoever dared had him kicked out of school and etch a severe black mark in his record. Damn Parker for telling on him. 

Violence should be allowed on kids like Parker, showing him up without actively showing him up at all.

These thoughts dissipated when the door opened and Tony Freakin’ Stark came in. A powerful black suit hugging his features, a pair of aviators covering his eyes. Which he was grateful for because the eyeless stare he was being given now would be nothing compared to what the man’s eyes were probably displaying.

His shoes were loud as he walked in front of the desk, leaning back and still looming over the teen in his chair.

“The internship is real,” Flash exclaimed absolutely shocked that someone like Tony Stark would waste his time with Penis Parker.

“Not only is it real, but there’s a lot more to it. But one thing still stands, he’s my kid. He’s important to me and my work. And when my kid comes to me, weary and obviously shaken and hurt. Afraid to tell me who put their hands on him, a question I should never have to ask. Meaning there’s a big problem, and that problem is you,”

Flash’s’ chest begun to beat out of his chest, new tears falling and any real sense of fight quickly turning to flight with the eery and effortless calmness of the man’s tone.

“You won’t be going to this nice school, and you’re most certainly not going to a fancy college when they find out you fucked with Iron-Man’s kid, because I know you want to go to MIT where I’m sending Peter when he’s ready. And they aren’t going to accept you because you hurt my kid, and if you do go they won’t be getting any nice charity from me otherwise,”

“Please, no. Please, I’ll do any-“

“No, it’s too late for that. It was too late the second you decided Peter’s potential resting place would be a sick bathroom floor,” Tony rose to his full height, leaving the room with a click before heading home with no other word exchanged.

—-

“Thank you,” Peter praised when he got home, voice already back to its happy self albeit a little bashful, especially with the blush on his cheeks.

“Anytime kiddo, anytime,” 


End file.
